Health Care For America Now

NEWS

Senate Aides: Reid Considering Medicare Payroll Tax Increase On Wealthy - Kaiser Health News

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pondering a proposal to increase the Medicare payroll tax on high earners "to help offset the costs of providing health insurance to millions of Americans, Senate aides said Thursday," The New York Times reports.

CMS: House bill increases health care costs - Politico

Democrats have promised that health reform would reduce health care costs, but legislation the House passed last week would increase costs over the next decade by $289 billion. By 2019, health costs would rise to 21.1 percent of GDP compared to 20.8 under current law, according to an actuarial report prepared by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Number of Insured Varies by Bill - Wall Street Journal

When the Senate unveils its health-care bill, all eyes will be on the price tag. But an equally significant number may be how many people get health insurance under the legislation.

Drug Makers Raise Prices in Face of Health Care Reform - NYTimes

Even as drug makers promise to support Washington’s health care overhaul by shaving $8 billion a year off the nation’s drug costs after the legislation takes effect, the industry has been raising its prices at the fastest rate in years.

OPINION

What The CMS Report Tells Us About The House Health Bill - Think Progress, Igor Volsky

The CMS report confirms that the House health care bill is a fairly modest proposal that expands access to insurance and builds on what works in the current system. Now, honest lawmakers — who believe in health care reform — must ensure that reform also lowers costs for families and reduces long term health care spending.

My Near Death Panel Experience - NYTimes, Rep. Earl Blumenauer

I DIDN’T mean to kill Grandma. I didn’t even mean to create death panels.

But now that I and my fellow lawmakers in the House have passed a health care bill, I’m finally free to explain what I learned as the author of the now-famous end-of-life provisions. My experiences during the bizarre controversies of the summer should provide a note of caution about what potential troubles and political distortions might lie ahead as health care legislation moves forward in the Senate, through the reconciliation process and toward a final bill.